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A man from Kings Lynn, Lincolnshire, has been slapped with a huge £75,000 fine for a string of serious fire safety breaches.

Mr Paul Turner was ordered to pay the fine after being convicted of five fire safety, and eight housing offences.

The fire safety breaches included:

Failing to review the fire risk assessment

Escape routes not adequately protected in case of fire

Locked fire exit

Blocked fire escape route

Dangerous and inadequate electrical installation

When fire and council officers visited the property in early 2016, they found at least 18 occupants, including two very young children at the property.

Mr Turner denied he was running an HMO, but said it was a hotel with paying guests. He did not have a licence to operate an HMO and the premises were not of a suitable standard to operate as a hotel.

Dan Moss, prevention and protection manager at Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue said: “Landlords have a responsibility to keep their tenants safe from fire and if they are ignoring those responsibilities and putting people at risk, we will not hesitate to prosecute.

When officers visited the property in February, they found at least 18 people living there, with two very young children aged one and two – we needed to take immediate action to ensure their safety.

“The penalty imposed on Mr Turner is a clear reminder to landlords that the court’s take safety as seriously as we do and the penalties for not doing are severe.”